Plans to open a new dental school at the University of East Anglia (UEA) are ‘not a done deal’ as government discussions continue.
The university had hoped to open the new facility to tackle the country’s ongoing NHS dentistry access issues.
This comes as Norwich was found to have the second lowest acceptance rate for NHS dentistry after Bristol, with only 16% of practices accepting new patients.
The city also has the worst dentist-to-patient ratio in the country, with just one NHS dentist for every 2,776 patients.
However, discussions about the proposed UEA dental school remain underway, as five Norfolk MPs recently met social care minister Stephen Kinnock.
Amongst the MPs was Clive Lewis, MP for Norwich South, who said he was ‘delighted’ to have taken ‘significant steps’ towards opening the new dental school.
He added: ‘It’s not a done deal yet, and I’ll continue to prioritise fixing local dentistry.’
Discussions advancing
A spokesperson for UEA said: ‘UEA continues to make the case for undergraduate dental training in the East of England.
‘We are grateful to the Norfolk MPs who represented UEA’s interests at last week’s meeting with the dental minister.
‘We are advancing discussions with the General Dental Council (GDC) and the Office for Students and continue to work relentlessly with our regional partners on dental development activities, including postgraduate training to tackle the oral health crisis in Norfolk and continue to be an important provider of health skills for our region.’
This follows the release of Lord Darzi’s report into the state of the NHS, which found that ‘urgent action needed’ on NHS dental contract.
The independent investigation into the state of the NHS concluded that the service is in a ‘critical condition’.
Lord Darzi said: ‘Although I have worked in the NHS for more than 30 years, I have been shocked by what I have found during this investigation – not just in the health service but in the state of the nation’s health.’
He added: ‘There are enough dentists in England, just not enough dentists willing to do enough NHS work’.
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